Rains seen this week over Visayas, Luzon

MANILA, Philippines - No tropical cyclone is expected to affect the country in the next three days, but rains will still persist in some areas due to the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ) and a low-pressure area (LPA) this week, the weather bureau said yesterday.

Robert Sawi, chief of the weather division of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), said the ITCZ was expected to bring rains over the Visayas and Southern Luzon until today.

He added that an LPA, embedded along the ITCZ, was also forecast to cross Visayas yesterday and bring rains and strong winds over the region.

As of 4 p.m. yesterday, the LPA was spotted in the vicinity of Catarman, Northern Samar.

Calabarzon and the provinces of Mindoro and Marinduque will experience cloudy skies with moderate to occasionally heavy rains and thunderstorms which may trigger flashfloods and landslides, the weather bureau said.

Metro Manila and the rest of the country, meanwhile, will have cloudy skies with rainshowers and thunderstorms mostly in the afternoon or evening.

Sawi warned those living in low-lying areas in Metro Manila against possible flooding during thunderstorms.

He said the rain activity will migrate northward, affecting Central and Northern Luzon beginning tomorrow up to Wednesday.

PAGASA expects three or four cyclones to enter the Philippine area of responsibility this month.

The next cyclone will be given the local name Odette, it said. 

PAGASA added that extreme Northern Luzon will experience moderate to occasionally rough seas in the next 24 hours. The rest of the country will have slight to moderate seas.